Rice DOESN'T have to be boring?! - Persian Rice With Crispy Potatoes

Monday, 3 April 2017

It's come to my attention that the vast majority of rice recipes and ways to eat rice are incredibly dull and boring. I mean, there's nothing inspiring about a pot of boiled white rice, is there?And that was the precise reason why I was so over the moon when my father dearest decided to show me how he makes his rice on a regular basis, PERSIAN STYLE! This recipe produces some of the best tasting rice I've ever come across, with the added bonus of some delicious, crispy potatoes too.Trust me, once you've tasted this rice, you'll never be able to go back to anything plain and boring again.

Ingredients:

1 cup and a half of basmati rice

3-4 medium potatoes, sliced into rounds of medium thickness

1 teaspoon of cumin

Olive oil

A few knobs of butter

Method:Place your rice into a large bowl and fill the bowl with water. Now proceed to pop your hands in and wash the rice with the water, running it in between your fingers and scrubbing it thoroughly in order to remove some of the excess starch. Once the water becomes cloudy, tip it out carefully and add more, repeating the washing process until you've reached a total of 3 times.Place your selected pot onto the stove at a high heat, add some water (you will need quite a large quantity, so just aim to fill up that pot!) and bring it to a rolling boil. Salt the water to taste, before introducing your rice. Parboil the rice for exactly 7 minutes, no more no less. Once this step is completed, remove it from the stove and drain it out into a sieve and set aside.

Now for the best part! With your stove on a low heat, add a shallow layer of olive oil to the bottom of the pot and allow it to heat up a little. Now sprinkle in your teaspoon of cumin seeds and leave them for approximately 1 minute; this will help release and disperse that wonderful cumin flavour into your oil.

Being incredibly careful with your fingers (I don't want to be responsible for any digits that become fries in the process...) place as many of your potato rounds onto the bottom of your pot. Leave them to sizzle away for about a minute.

Grab a spoon and gradually place your rice into the pot. Make sure EVERY potato is completely covered by the rice. Once all of the rice has been introduced, do not interfere with it in any way, shape or form; it doesn't need to be pressed down or flattened. Now add in some generous blobs of butter! (When I say generous, I don't mean a whole block but this isn't meant to be a low fat recipe, so don't be afraid to go for it. It tastes so much nicer with the addition of butter!

Before leaving the rice to completely cook for 45 minutes on a low heat, dampen a large tea towel, wrap it around the pot's lid and place it onto the pot. This is a vital step to insure that your rice steams beautifully.

And there you have it! Once the rice has finished it's 45 minutes cooking time, remove it from the heat and spoon it out into a bowl, followed by the gorgeous crispy potatoes (my favourite part!) in order to create a dish that's pleasing to the eye.

As you can see from the photo above, this was served at one of our latest dinner parties and, in approximately 10 minutes, the entire bowl had been emptied and even scraped! It's just such a delicious recipe!

Thank you so much for reading today's recipe; I really hope you enjoyed finding out how we cook our rice and obtain a wonderful result every time! Do you like rice? If so, how do you normally prepare and eat yours?

Please let me know in the comments section and, as usual, follow myself and this blog; if you loved this, you're DEFINITELY going to enjoy my other content! Have a lovely week!

30 comments

I do like rice, but I bet I would love it persian style. Need to try your version soon. Sorry for the question, as I around here: Are you Persian? Or is this just a way your father likes to cook? Like, my mother loves cooking Asian food, but we are German.

I've had and made Iranian rice using a similar steaming method, but without the potatoes and cumin layer at the bottom of the pot. My rice crust is popular with kids who have good teeth but too gritty for adults. Your crispy potato layer was the perfect improvement I was looking for and the aroma of cumin is definitely a step up. The butter on top for me was a bit too indulgent because I served it with a rich sauce. However, it's perfectly justifiable when balanced with grilled meat, fish or roast chicken and a dressed mixed salad. A perfect summer meal in waiting! Thanks once again for a descriptive and user friendly recepe.

Wow, your Iranian rice sounds absolutely delicious, I've got to give it a go! Thanks so much for reading, I'm really chuffed that you enjoyed hearing about this adaptation of the recipe! xxLots of love,Marina Rosie xx

This recipe sounds and looks so yummy! Rice is a must have for my meals and I occasionally cook it with sweet potatoes, but crispy potatoes is a whole other level of deliciousness! Thank you for sharing Marina!

Thanks so much for reading this one Jenny, so glad you enjoyed the recipe! xx I absolutely love rice, it sounds fabulous with sweet potatoes! xx You're going to have to give me the recipe Jenny! xxLots of love,Marina Rosie xx

I agree that rice can often be labelled as being boring but it is recipes like yours that show it could not be further from the truth. I like the sound of the crispy potatoes and generous addition of butter x

I mean, there's nothing exciting about boiled white rice Ana, so we had to reinvent it with this and it's gorgeous! x You've got to have that crunch and, of course, butter is always welcome! It makes everything taste better! x Lots of love,Marina Rosie xx

I love Persian Rice. There's not a thing wrong with a simple meal of rice, butter, and a little spice. In fact, the first time I made it, the recipe came from a Bon Appetit magazine I was reading at the doctor's office. I'm really excited to try your version!